logo
Kung fu queen Angela Mao's unusual turn in Broken Oath, a remake of Japan's Lady Snowblood

Kung fu queen Angela Mao's unusual turn in Broken Oath, a remake of Japan's Lady Snowblood

The 1977 film Broken Oath marked a change in style for kung fu legend Angela Mao Ying, who glammed it up in a Qing dynasty costume and a 'princess' hairstyle to play a ruthless assassin hell bent on tracking down some corrupt officials.
Advertisement
Here, we discuss one of Mao's greatest performances with film historian Frank Djeng, who provided the commentary for the Eureka Entertainment release of the film.
Broken Oath is a high-quality martial arts film, but it was fairly unknown until its recent release.
It has always been an obscure title, even though it stars Angela Mao. People have never been that familiar with it, and it originally didn't get much of a release outside Asia. But it's very nicely made.
I think the fact it has a Korean director, Cheng Chang-ho (Chung Chang-hwa), brings something special to it. Previously, Cheng had made
King Boxer , aka Five Fingers of Death, for Shaw Brothers, and The Skyhawk for Golden Harvest, so he had a good track record at directing martial arts films.
Advertisement

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Hong Kong should allow cinemas to host live events to survive: lawmaker
Hong Kong should allow cinemas to host live events to survive: lawmaker

South China Morning Post

time3 days ago

  • South China Morning Post

Hong Kong should allow cinemas to host live events to survive: lawmaker

Hong Kong should relax the licensing renewal criteria for cinemas to allow them to host live performances or sports broadcasts, a lawmaker has said, as the city continues to grapple with a slew of theatre closures. Kenneth Fok Kai-kong, who represents sports, performing arts, culture and publication in the legislature, made the suggestion on Thursday after the Golden Harvest cinema at MegaBox shopping centre in Kowloon Bay announced it would be closing down at the end of the week. Fok said that while he believed the rate of closures was slowing down, he feared that residents would gradually stop going to the cinema to watch films, with fewer choices of theatres available to them. 'The government should consider relaxing the licensing requirements to allow cinemas to operate different types of businesses,' he said, citing live performances and live sports broadcasts as alternative events that would allow more theatres to survive. Fok added that box office revenues in Hong Kong were largely dependent on American films, with Hollywood blockbusters taking up 70 to 80 per cent of earnings. As such, the current downturn in the United States box office was also affecting Hong Kong, he explained. US domestic ticket sales amounted to US$8.7 billion in 2024, down 3.3 per cent from US$9.04 billion the year before. According to the Hong Kong Theatre Association, only 51 cinemas were left operating in the city as of May, a sharp drop from the 112 venues in 1994.

Hong Kong should allow cinemas to host live events to survive: lawmaker
Hong Kong should allow cinemas to host live events to survive: lawmaker

South China Morning Post

time3 days ago

  • South China Morning Post

Hong Kong should allow cinemas to host live events to survive: lawmaker

Hong Kong should relax the licensing renewal criteria for cinemas to allow them to host live performances or sports broadcasts, a lawmaker has said, as the city continues to grapple with a slew of theatre closures. Advertisement Kenneth Fok Kai-kong, who represents sports, performing arts, culture and publication in the legislature, made the suggestion on Thursday after the Golden Harvest cinema at MegaBox shopping centre in Kowloon Bay announced it would be closing down at the end of the week. Fok said that while he believed the rate of closures was slowing down, he feared that residents would gradually stop going to the cinema to watch films, with fewer choices of theatres available to them. 'The government should consider relaxing the licensing requirements to allow cinemas to operate different types of businesses,' he said, citing live performances and live sports broadcasts as alternative events that would allow more theatres to survive. Fok added that box office revenues in Hong Kong were largely dependent on American films, with Hollywood blockbusters taking up 70 to 80 per cent of earnings. Advertisement As such, the current downturn in the United States box office was also affecting Hong Kong, he explained. US domestic ticket sales amounted to US$8.7 billion in 2024, down 3.3 per cent from US$9.04 billion the year before. According to the Hong Kong Theatre Association, only 51 cinemas were left operating in the city as of May, a sharp drop from the 112 venues in 1994.

Golden Harvest to shutter MegaBox branch – 6th cinema to close in Hong Kong this year
Golden Harvest to shutter MegaBox branch – 6th cinema to close in Hong Kong this year

HKFP

time3 days ago

  • HKFP

Golden Harvest to shutter MegaBox branch – 6th cinema to close in Hong Kong this year

Hong Kong cinema chain Golden Harvest has announced that it will close its branch in the Kowloon Bay shopping mall MegaBox on Monday due to 'the end of the tenancy.' It will be the sixth cinema to shut down in the city this year. In a post shared on Facebook and Instagram on Wednesday, Golden Harvest said GH MegaBox would offer a series of special discounts to audiences and host a 'Classic Mystery Movie Session' on Sunday to mark its final day of operation. IMAX tickets will be sold for HK$40, while selected combos at the concession stands will be priced at HK$40 on Sunday. Anyone who presents a GH MegaBox movie ticket at the snack counters of other Golden Harvest cinemas may enjoy a HK$10 discount on purchases of HK$65 or more between 9 and 30 June. The MegaBox branch, with seven theatres and 852 seats, will be the third Golden Harvest cinema to close this year. Grand Ocean Cinema on Canton Road closed on Monday after operating for more than five decades. Golden Harvest said in its announcement last month that the cinema was a 'landmark' in Tsim Sha Tsui, 'witnessing the passage of time through different eras of film.' In April, the Whampoa branch of Golden Harvest closed after nearly 16 years of operation in the residential area. Golden Harvest said both closures were due to the end of the cinemas' tenancies. Last year, nine local cinemas closed as overall box office receipts in Hong Kong marked the weakest performance since 2011, according to figures compiled by Hong Kong Box Office Limited. Total box office revenue amounted to HK$1.3 billion in 2024 – down 6.2 per cent from 2023, it also said in January. As of Thursday, the Hong Kong Theatres Association's website showed that it had 50 members: 12 on Hong Kong Island, 18 in Kowloon, and 20 in the New Territories, with GH MegaBox still listed as a member.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store